1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to telecommunications, and more particularly, to wireless communications.
2. Description of the Related Art
Within wireless communications, a variety of transmission techniques are employed. Two relatively common techniques are Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). CDMA is a modulation and multiple access technique where multiple users employing different orthogonal Walsh codes can be multiplexed onto a common frequency carrier. CDMA has been used in various wireless communications systems due to its useful properties of interference averaging and multipath diversity. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that spreading the signals in a CDMA system provides sufficient processing gain to allow decoding transmissions received at very low carrier-to-interference ratio (C/I). Therefore, a CDMA transmission can withstand high levels of interference, allowing deployments with universal frequency reuse (same frequency used in all the sectors in the system). Examples of wireless communications systems that employ CDMA are second generation IS-95 systems and third generation cellular systems, such as UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and cdma2000. CDMA is also used in the IEEE 802.11b standard for wireless LANs (Local Area Networks).
In a CDMA downlink (base station to mobile station), the transmissions on different Walsh codes are orthogonal when they are received at the mobile station. This is due to the fact that the signal is transmitted from a fixed location (base station) on the downlink and all the Walsh codes are received synchronized. Therefore, in the absence of multipath signals, transmissions on different codes do not interfere with each other. However, in the presence of multipath propagation (typical of cellular environments), the Walsh codes are no longer orthogonal, and thus, interfere with each other, producing Inter-Symbol Interference (ISI) and Multiple Access Interference (MAI). ISI and MAI limit the maximum achievable Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), thereby limiting the maximum data rate that may be supported.
The problem is also present on a CDMA uplink (mobile station to base station) because the received Walsh codes from multiple users are not orthogonal even in the absence of any multipath signals. In the uplink, the propagation times from mobiles at different locations to the base station are often different. The received codes are not synchronized when they arrive at the base station, and therefore orthogonality cannot be guaranteed for signals coming from different mobiles. Transmissions from multiple users interfere with each other, generating Multiple Access Interference (MAI) and therefore contributing to the noise rise seen by each of the users. In general, the noise rise at the base station is kept below a certain threshold called the rise-over-thermal (RoT) threshold in order to guarantee desirable system capacity and coverage. The circuitry of the base station generates a certain amount of temperature dependent noise called thermal noise. The RoT threshold limits the amount of power above the thermal noise at which mobiles transmissions can be received. The threshold, along with interference from other users, limits the achievable data rates and capacity for transmissions on the CDMA uplink.
A stylized representation of a conventional OFDM transmitter chain 100 is shown in FIG. 1. Generally, a set of information bits called an encoder packet is coded, interleaved and modulated into Q symbols and I symbols by hardware/software/firmware 105. A group of the I and Q symbols are serial-to-parallel converted by a de-multiplexer 110 and mapped to available subcarriers. Unused subcarriers are filled with zeros, and thus, carry no symbols, as stylistically represented at 115. At 120 an IFFT (Inverse Fast Fourier Transform) operation is performed on the subcarrier symbols and the resulting symbols are parallel-to-serial converted by a multiplexer 125 to form a time-domain signal that is quadrature modulated and converted to an RF frequency for transmission by hardware/software/firmware 130. In some embodiments of the OFDM transmitter chain 100, a baseband filter 135 may be employed prior to converting to the RF frequency.
OFDM does not suffer some of the problems associated with CDMA. For example, ISI is substantially reduced by using longer symbol durations in OFDM. Moreover, the transmissions occur on orthogonal subcarriers without generating any Multiple Access Interference (MAI). In an OFDM system, a high data rate stream is converted from parallel to serial, resulting in a lower rate on each of the parallel streams. A lower rate on each of the streams allows using longer symbol duration. The multiple parallel data streams are mapped to orthogonal subcarriers in OFDM. The OFDM modulation efficiently uses the radio spectrum by placing modulated subcarriers as close as possible without causing Inter-Carrier Interference (ICI). Owing, at least in part, to its superior performance, OFDM modulation has been adopted in various standards, most notably digital audio broadcast (DAB), digital video broadcast (DVB), asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL), IEEE LAN (802.11a and 802.11g) and IEEE MAN 802.16a. OFDM modulation is also being considered for various next generation wireless standards.
While OFDM provides some benefits over CDMA, it also lacks some of the benefits of CDMA, such as interference averaging and absence of spreading (processing gain). Thus, OFDM may be limited to deployments with a frequency reuse factor of greater than 1, resulting in inefficient use of the scarce radio spectrum.
The present invention is directed to overcoming, or at least reducing, the effects of, one or more of the problems set forth above.